benefits of yoga

Yoga improves quality of life. It has been linked to positive effects for people dealing with a wide range of health challenges - depression, anxiety, attention deficit disorder, osteoporosis, arthritis, back pain, PMS, asthma, cancer, high blood pressure…the list goes on.

In addition, yoga expands creativity, strength, flexibility, respiratory efficiency, happiness, peace of mind…again the list goes on. People from all walks of life are able to apply yoga to their lives - top performers in all fields attribute their ability to be in "the zone" to the techniques of yoga.

We have done a Rasa Yoga Community Newsletter in the past on the benefits of yoga, and you can click below for an exerpt!

The following are just a few of the specific benefits of yoga, as discussed in the book Meditation as Medicine by Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD.

The Relaxation Response achieves the following biological reactions, which remain intact for several hours after meditation ends:

Marked reduction in oxygen use

Notably lower secretion of stress hormones

Increase in immune factors

Calm brain wave activity

As a result of these factors, meditators enjoyed improved health. Among the many improvements were the following:

Premenstrual syndrome symptoms decreased by 57 percent

Migraine headaches decreased notably

Anxiety and depression were reduced significantly

Working people missed fewer work days due to illness

Patients with AIDS and cancer experienced decreased symptoms

75 percents of patients with insomnia were cured and almost 25 percent improved

Patients with chronic pain required an average of 36 percent less treatment

Patients with high blood pressure recovered completely or improved

Guided imagery and progressive relaxation have been shown to bring: improvements in cardiovascular function, use of oxygen, blood glucose levels, reactivity to stressors, and immune function. Mindfulness meditation has been proven to decrease panic attacks, decrease general anxiety, reduce levels of chronic pain, reduce incidence of headaches, improve response rates to drug and alcohol addiction treatment, and reduce obesity.

Mantra meditation has been shown to achieve the following:

Reduction of anxiety

Reduction of chronic pain

Lowered levels of cortisol

Increase in cognitive function

Reduction of substance abuse

Lowered blood pressure

Improvement in post-traumatic stress syndrome

Reduction in use of medical care and hospitalizationStudies of mantra meditators who had been practicing for 5 years or more were physiologically 12 years younger than their nonmeditating counterparts. Those practicing shorter term were 5 years younger than the control group.